North Carolina § 15-188 - Manner and place of execution.

§ 15-188. Manner and place of execution.

In accordance with G.S. 15-187, the mode of executing a death sentence must in every case be by administering to the convict or felon an intravenous injection of a substance or substances in a lethal quantity sufficient to cause death and until the person is dead, and that procedure shall be determined by the Secretary of the Department of Public Safety, who shall ensure compliance with the federal and State constitutions; and when any person, convict or felon shall be sentenced by any court of the State having competent jurisdiction to be so executed, the punishment shall only be inflicted within a permanent death chamber which the superintendent of the State penitentiary is hereby authorized and directed to provide within the walls of the North Carolina penitentiary at Raleigh, North Carolina. The superintendent of the State penitentiary shall also cause to be provided, in conformity with this Article, the necessary appliances for the infliction of the punishment of death and qualified personnel to set up and prepare the injection, administer the preinjections, insert the IV catheter, and to perform other tasks required for this procedure in accordance with the requirements of this Article. History (1909, c. 443, s. 2; C.S., s. 4658; 1935, c. 294, s. 2; 1983, c. 678, s. 2; 1998-212, s. 17.22(b); 2012-136, s. 1; 2013-154, s. 3(a).) Editor's Note. - Session Laws 2012-136, s. 10, made the amendments to this section by Session Laws 2012-136, s. 1, applicable for executions scheduled after July 2, 2012. Session Laws 2013-154, s. 3(b) provides: "Procedures and substances utilized to carry out a death sentence in place before the effective date of this act are not abated or affected by this act; however, it shall be within the discretion of the Secretary whether to continue, change, or modify such procedures or substances as authorized by law." Effect of Amendments. - Session Laws 2012-136, s. 1, effective July 2, 2012, deleted "and approved by the Governor and Council of State" and made minor punctuation changes. For applicability, see Editor's note. Session Laws 2013-154, s. 3(a), effective June 19, 2013, substituted "an intravenous injection of a substance or substances in a lethal quantity sufficient to cause death and until the person is dead, and that procedure shall be determined by the Secretary of the Department of Public Safety, who shall ensure compliance with the federal and State constitutions" for "a lethal quantity of an ultrashort-acting barbiturate in combination with a chemical paralytic agent until the convict or felon is dead" in the first sentence. Legal Periodicals. - For article, "The Truth About Physician Participation in Lethal Injection Executions," see 88 N.C.L. Rev. 11 (2009).